Friday, December 30, 2016

What Is The Vedic Explanation For Aliens, Dinosaurs And Other Such Things

“The word sarva-gatah (all-pervading) is significant because there is no doubt that living entities are all over God's creation. They live on the land, in the water, in the air, within the earth and even within fire. The belief that they are sterilized in fire is not acceptable, because it is clearly stated here that the soul cannot be burned by fire. Therefore, there is no doubt that there are living entities also in the sun planet with suitable bodies to live there.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Bhagavad-gita, 2.24 Purport)

Friend1: You know there is an entire branch of modern science dedicated to the study of prehistoric animals.

Friend2: Paleontology. I am aware.

Friend1: The joke is that they are dinosaur nerds.

Friend2: Ross from Friends.

Friend1: Exactly. The study is based on fossil evidence.

Friend2: Right. Physical evidence is there in the earth. The scientists put together the various pieces and then make guesses on the body types.

Friend1: They have to because such creatures are not found in the world today.

Friend2: Just because we don’t see them now doesn’t mean they never inhabited the earth.

Friend1: This got me to thinking. Do the Vedas mention dinosaurs?

Friend2: I suppose you’re wondering about aliens as well? UFOs. Space travel. Life in outer space.

Friend1: Yeah. I think I know the answer, but I want to hear your thoughts.

Friend2: Well, when you read ancient texts like the Ramayana, Shrimad Bhagavatam and other Puranas, you find descriptions of creatures more amazing than the dinosaurs.

Friend1: Like the Rakshasas. There was Simhika, who could capture someone by their shadow. There was the one eyed-monster that Rama and Lakshmana battled in the forest.

Friend2: A mad elephant. A powerful crocodile. Very large birds that could speak, like Jatayu and Sampati.

Friend1: So if someone was asking, is that evidence of dinosaurs? What about aliens?

Friend2: Listen, these things are only amazing to people who are not familiar with the spiritual science.

Friend1: How so?

Friend2: The first teaching of the Bhagavad-gita is the difference between matter and spirit. More specifically, the identity of the individual. You and I are spirit soul. So is everything else that is living.

Friend1: And these fragments of spirit are equal in their constitutional makeup. I may have a certain body and you a different kind, but at the core we are the same.

Friend2: Same in quality, but obviously we have separate identities. The soul is so amazing. It can never be killed. It can never be made wet. It can never be burned, either.

Friend1: Right.

Friend2: In one verse Shri Krishna uses the words “sarva-gatah.” His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada makes an interesting comment based on the presence of those words.

Friend1: What does he say?

Friend2: First off, the words mean “found everywhere.” Gatah means “gone to” or “having gone”. Sarva means “every” or “all.” The spirit soul goes everywhere. Prabhupada says that this naturally means individual spirit is found all over God’s creation. Space is part of that creation, too. There must be living entities on the sun.

Friend1: How is that possible, though? We can’t survive contact with fire.

Friend2: That’s because of our body type. Remember, we’re talking about spirit here. The spirit soul can survive anywhere. In the sun it gets a suitable body type, one composed of the material element of fire. We can’t survive in the water, but this doesn’t mean there is no life there. Fish have a body type suitable for that habitat.

Friend1: I see.

Friend2: So it’s the same thing with dinosaurs and other such amazing creatures. Everything is possible in the material world. You can get any type of body. There are creatures even more wonderful than the dinosaurs that we have yet to conceptualize. As it is described in the Ramayana, even monkey-like creatures from ancient times could talk. The human beings were much larger as well, and they could live for a very long time.

Friend1: What about aliens?

Friend2: Sarva-gatah explains that. There are life forms on other planets. All over the material creation you’ll find living beings. We speculate about alien life, but actually these are just different kinds of bodies suited for living on different kinds of planets. Nothing to see, really. The wise person is interested more in attaining a spiritual body. Whether one gets the body of a beast, a bird, or a human being, death will come eventually. The all-pervading individual spirit will then travel to a different destination. The spiritual body only comes when there is perfect consciousness of God at the time of death. The primary focus of Vedic teachings is how to get that consciousness and maintain it.